With a sigh, he tucked the phone back into his pocket, wondering if he was making a mistake in letting Dakota help him. The last thing he wanted was someone else bossing him around. He had enough of that with the clan always breathing down his neck. It might be wise to give his friendship with Dakota some serious thought before he committed himself. He might be young, but he wasn’t going to be pushed around.
He was staring down at his phone and thinking about the conversation when he walked into the study, not really paying attention to his surroundings, and almost missed the sound of a drawer closing. When he lifted his eyes, he expected to find Emily by the bookcases and it took him asecond to spot her sitting behind the desk with a funny look on her face. He was instantly suspicious.
“I’m sorry that took so long,” he said, stuffing the phone back into his pocket.
“Oh, that’s okay,” she said, jumping to her feet. “I couldn’t resist sitting in this big chair. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything quite like it.”
“Did you get a chance to look at the books?” he asked, watching her face carefully. “You were so excited when you saw them, I figured I’d find you up on one of the ladders reading titles.”
“Oh, I looked around for a while,” she said, then hesitated. “It would take days just to look at them all. I wonder if anyone has ever cataloged the collection.”
Her words sounded right, but he sensed guilt under the surface. He wasn’t sure how, but it was there, and a huge wave of disappointment washed over him. He’d known from the very beginning that she was hiding something, he’d sensed it that first day in class, but he let himself forget, let his attraction to her blind him. Trusting her enough to bring her home with him had been a mistake. It was clear she’d been rifling through the desk; he just wasn’t sure what she thought she’d find.
“That’s okay, it’s tempting, I understand,” he said, trying to pretend nothing had changed. “Shall we finish the tour?”
“I should probably get going,” Emily said, taking a few steps toward the door. “It’s getting late, and I’m supposed to go over to Valerie’s to get ready for the dance.”
“Right, the dance,” he said, wondering if he should cancel, then dismissed the idea. “We’re meeting out front, right?”
“Yep, eight o’clock,” she said, then hesitated for a second. “You know I won’t be upset if you change your mind about going. It’s not like you really wanted to go with me, and I wasn’t even planning on going…”
“I’ll be there at eight,” he said, interrupting her. “I can’t cancel on you; I would never hear the end of it.”
“Okay, I just thought you should know,” she said. “I guess I’ll get going now.”
“I’ll walk you out,” he said, not trusting her alone anywhere in the house now.
He stood on the front porch watching her drive away, his mind a jumble of unanswered questions and unfounded suspicions, but underneath, his body pulsed with attraction, desire only a short step away. It was frustrating and maddening, making it difficult to sort out what Emily could possibly be up to, but one thing he knew for sure, she wasn’t being completely honest with him, and he was going to find out why.
***Emily***
Emily rushed through the door of her apartment, threw her purse and keys onto the little table by the door, then rushed over to her computer, glancing at the clock on the wall. She only had half an hour to spare if she was going to take a shower and still make it to Valerie’s on time, but she couldn’t resist doing something with the information she’d found in the desk.
It was just a name, but she had a feeling deep in her gut that it was going to lead somewhere, she just needed some time to follow up. Since there wasn’t much of that available to her right then, she settled for a general search and was rewarded by enough to keep her busy until the clock told her that it was time to hit the shower if she didn’t want to be late. When she was ready to leave, she looked longingly at the computer, then gathered her things, reminding herself that the dance was part of her job, too.
A few hours later, she was sitting in front of the mirrorwhile Valerie chatted away as she pulled and teased Emily’s hair, not even noticing when she stabbed her in the scalp with a bobby pin. She endured the torture only because it meant she’d won the fight about the layers and layers of makeup her friend wanted to paint on her face. Still, she knew that she’d have a headache before the night was over.
“I don’t know why you didn’t have Taylor pick you up,” Valerie said. “You won’t get your big moment.”
“I don’t need a big moment, this isn’t a date,” she said, looking at her friend in the mirror. “We talked about this, Valerie. We’re just going as friends, nothing more.”
Valerie paused, comb in the air, studying her. “Are you really that blind?” she finally asked. “He’s into you, Emily. He might not have asked you to this dance, but I bet you that he kisses you before the night is over.”
She hated the thrill that shot through her at the thought and shook her head. “No way, it’s not like that between us,” she said. “In fact, we can barely stand each other.”
“Deny it all you want, but I’ve seen all I need to,” Valerie said, then went back to fixing her hair. “He’s a catch, Emily, don’t let him get away.”
She didn’t say anything, couldn’t, as a huge wave of guilt washed over her. It was bad enough that she was attracted to him. If he was attracted to her, she’d probably end up hurting him when he found out the truth. She had to stop this before it went any further, had to make sure he knew they could only be friends. She just hoped it wasn’t too late.
Valerie was still waiting for her date when Emily was ready to leave for the dance. “Thanks for doing my hair, I feel like a princess,” she said, giving her friend a hug. “It was fun to have some girl time too.”
“You look beautiful,” Valerie said, grinning at her. “And that dress is going to make the guys look twice. It’s going to drive Taylor crazy.”
She looked down at the little black dress she’d spent a fortune on when she got her first paycheck, then back up at Valerie. “You don’t think it’s too skimpy, do you?” she asked. “I don’t want to look out of place.”
“You’re going to fit in just fine, stop worrying,” Valerie said. “It’s going to be a great night.”
It was a beautiful fall night, and Emily realized that she didn’t mind waiting for Taylor as she stood outside the large reception hall on campus. Entertaining herself by watching the couples and groups file past her into the building, she almost missed Taylor walking toward her. He was dressed in a black suit, his hair slicked back from his face, making his green eyes stand out even more, and he was carrying what looked suspiciously like a corsage.
